If you are looking for a decent protein bar, you’ve probably noticed a wall of bars you can choose from at your local supermarket. And you might be asking yourself what’s considered a protein bar and how much protein is usually found in a typical protein bar.
A typical protein bar will contain 20-30 grams of protein per serving. Some breakfast bars, cereal bars, granola bars, and other kinds of bars may look like protein bars but contain more carbs and fats than they actually do protein.
It’s important you look at the nutrition label of the so-called protein bar you are buying to be sure that it contains a good amount of protein per serving.
Below, we’ll go over in more detail what’s considered a protein bar, the benefits of eating protein bars, what to look for when shopping for your protein bar, and more!
How Much Protein Is Considered A Protein Bar
The first step in identifying what is a protein bar and what might be a granola bar is to look at the label. And this is what you should look for when looking at the nutrition label of your protein bars.
As a general guideline, most protein bars contain 20-30 grams of protein per serving. Some may contain a little more protein or a little less. But this is the typical amount of protein most protein bars will contain.
The other macronutrients you’ll see in a protein bar are carbs and fats. I personally like to look for protein bars with at least 20g of protein or more per serving and a calorie content of around 200-240 calories.
If you find that the bar you are looking at has little to no protein and most of the nutritional value comes from fats and carbs.
Then, chances are this is what some people consider an energy bar, granola bar, cereal bar, etc.
If you want to know my favorite protein bar. You can check out this post here (I’ll link to it when it becomes available)
Purpose Of Protein Bars
Now, let’s go over the purpose of protein bars…
Granola bars, energy bars, and cereal bars are all great snacks. They are easy to carry around with you. They don’t take up much space. You can literally grab them from your pantry and stuff them into your pocket if you are in a rush.
Then, later on, you can rip these bad boys open and enjoy it wherever you are!
Well, protein bars are just like these bars when it comes to convenience, but they contain better macronutrients if you have specific fitness goals you are after.
Most people will use protein bars as a way to boost their protein intake throughout the day.
Since protein is the macronutrient responsible for muscle growth, repair, and retention, plenty of fitness enthusiast use protein bars to help them with their protein intake goals.
Also, another added benefit is if you are trying to diet and lose weight. Protein bars are a great and healthy alternative when it comes to candy bars.
They can taste similar but have a better balance of carbs, fats, and proteins than traditional candy bars.
Now that you know about the purpose of protein bars. Let’s talk about what to look for when shopping around.
And it’s important to remember protein bars should only supplement your diet. This means the majority of your protein should be from real whole foods like chicken, steak, eggs, yogurt, etc.
Things To Look For In A Protein Bar
Reading the nutrition label when deciding which protein bar is best for you and your goals is essential.
That’s because if you are trying to lose weight. You’ll want to opt for a protein bar with a good amount of protein but contains fewer overall calories.
And if you are trying to bulk or need a lot of energy from calories (maybe for a hike, run, marathon, etc.) Then, you might want to consider a protein bar with higher amounts of calories to help fuel the activity you plan on doing.
Amount Of Calories
Suppose you are counting calories or macros. The first thing you’ll want to take a look at is the amount of overall calories that are in the protein bar you’re thinking of getting.
Plenty of bars contain over 20g of protein per serving but can range anywhere from around 200 calories per bar to over 400 calories per bar.
Which one is right for you depends on your fitness goals and what you are trying to achieve.
How Much Protein Is In Your Protein Bar
As I stated at the beginning of this article…
A good amount of protein in your protein bar should contain anywhere from 20-30 grams of protein per serving.
Your bar can contain more or less, but this is the range I would personally shoot for.
Looking At Fats And Carbs
The other macronutrients you’ll find in bars are fats and carbs. These are what essentials will make your protein bars taste good.
There is nothing wrong with fats and carbs. And good protein bars usually do a good job of having a good balance of fats, carbs, and proteins in their bars.
What you look for here will depend on your goals and if you have any diet requirements. For example, if you are on the keto diet. You’ll look for bars with low to zero carbs, mostly fats and protein.
Other Nutrients
These are the other ingredients and nutrients that some protein bars contain.
Some bars have fiber, vitamins, and minerals. And if this is something important for you and your goals. Then, it should be looked at.
Or you might be trying to avoid certain ingredients. Then it’s important to look out for these as well.
What’s The Difference Between Protein Bars And Granola Bars
Some people might confuse the two. There are granola bars that can be considered protein bars with the amount of protein they contain, so I don’t blame anyone for the confusion.
Read this post if you want to dive deeper into the difference between protein bars and granola bars.
The two have plenty of differences, but the main one is protein content.
A granola bar contains way more carbs and very little protein. These are great for people looking for carbs as a fuel source—a very popular choice for hikers.
And a protein bar will contain a good amount of protein in the bar.
Are Protein Bars Better Than Protein Shakes
This is a great question I often see being asked about protein bars and shakes. What are the differences between them, and which one is best?
This post covers this topic in much more detail. You can find it here: Differences between protein bars and protein shakes.
You will learn everything you need to know about using protein bars and protein shakes there. Which is better, and what are the pros and cons of using each?
And after reading that post. You might be surprised that a protein shake might be your better option!
Final Thoughts On What’s Considered A Protein Bar
This concludes this post on how much protein is considered to be a protein bar.
I know figuring out which bar is right for you can be hard, especially when granola, protein, cereal, energy, and other types of bars are being sold all right next to each other.
It can get confusing what is considered a protein bar and what isn’t considered one. But hopefully, I did my job and you are better equipped to make a smarter decision.
You should now understand the typical amount of protein found in different protein bars and better understand how you should select these bars based on your fitness goals.
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